Coffee House Surprise
by fredsavage
Summary: Jane goes with her gut and sees what happens. One-shot


Maura was hurriedly closing out her computer and trying to finish up for the day. She had plans, big plans that honestly were frightening but exhilarating at the same time. She was proposing to her partner of over a year on the anniversary of the day they first met. And she was running late. She hated to be late, it made her stressed out. She knew Jane had already left as they had dinner plans at their favorite restaurant later that evening. Maura wasn't quite sure she'd have enough time to get ready the way she wanted to get ready. She'd just make it, if she didn't hit any traffic on the way home. She was sure Jane had no idea something big was going to happen that night, although they'd both been pretty distracted with work this past week.

As she was reaching into the back of the bottom desk drawer for the ring she had been hiding for almost a month, her phone vibrates on the top of her desk. It is a text from Jane.

_Meet me at the coffee shop by the house. Please._

Maura shakes her head.

_Jane, I'm already running late._ She types.

A vibrate back,

_I know sweetie. Please, it's important_.

Maura sighs in irritation; sometimes her partner could be so exasperating. All she types back is…

_Jane…_

All she gets back is…

_Maura…_

Allowing herself a secret smile of love for Jane, she pulls on her trench coat and picks up her briefcase. She hurries out of the morgue typing.

_OK, but this better be good. ;) 15 min. _

All she gets back is a smiley face. On the short drive over, she thinks about the coffee house close to their home. Prime Roast was a place of many fond memories and reluctantly she acknowledges their soy latte was to die for.

Pulling up curbside, she doesn't see Jane's car, thinking she must have walked. 'What is going on?' she wonders. Peeking into the coffee house she sees Jane sitting at their regular table, two cups in front of her, staring off into space, chin in her hand.

Maura's earlier irritation with her partner is gone upon seeing her. Seeing Jane calms her in a way she never knew before. She sidles up behind her, a hand on a warm back, and a kiss on a smiling cheek.

"Hey." Jane says on a breath in, grabbing a hold of a hand and tugging Maura closer for a proper kiss. Maura smiles into coffee tinged lips. Maura removes her coat and sits, taking a small sip of her hot latte.

Tapping the hand in front of her, "So Jane, do you want to tell me what's going on? I'm still interested in making our dinner reservation." Maura says smiling, taking a long drink of her soy latte.

Jane looks closely at Maura, brown meeting hazel, smiling shyly. She takes a sip of her own coffee before taking a deep breath and reaching to take the hands of her partner. She smiles as Maura almost immediately runs her thumbs in small circles on the backs of Jane's scarred palms, calming her instantly.

Tilting her head, "Maura, have you ever noticed how many major decisions and discussions we have made and had here at the coffee house? Most at this very table?" Jane asks quietly.

Maura looks off somewhere over Jane's shoulder thinking about what Jane is asking.

A tug on her hands brings her back as Jane continues to talk in a low voice.

"Our first coffee date when we first met, you asked me on our first date here, we told Frankie and my ma about us, I whispered I love you into your ear – right over there on that sofa behind us after we walked here during a snowstorm." She trails off as they both look at said sofa and remember.

Turning back Maura speaks in a hushed tone, "I asked you to move in, we fought over Ian, your first "outing" after shooting yourself was here…"

Jane smiles, "And we made up too many times to count right here too, plus hundreds of everyday, perfectly lovely cups of coffee and newspapers and crossword puzzles and I realized I want the next _big_ thing to happen here too." Jane finishes grinning hopefully, eyes dancing.

Maura looks blankly back at Jane, "What next _big_ thing?"

Jane leans back in her chair, crossing her arms. "I know we've been busy this week but you and I both know what today is. And I love Rowan Tyne's but there is a reason you want to go tonight. And it's big and I'm just saying I think it should happen here." Jane finishes by pulling out a small Tiffany's box from her blazer and putting it on the table, pushing it slowly towards a quickly catching on Maura.

Maura puts her hand over her mouth in surprise, "Jane Rizzoli, how could you have known? How could you possibly have known?" She puts both hands flat on the table, eyeing the ring box in front of her.

Jane leans forward, chin in hand, "I don't know anything for sure until you tell me."

Maura looks up finally, eyes shining, "Jane, we met three years ago today, in an alley over a man with a gunshot wound. From the moment we shook hands and I first saw those dimples…" Jane's smile widens showing said dimples, "I knew, I knew something was going to change. I wasn't sure what but I knew. Three years ago I knew. And I thought I knew how tonight would go but here you are surprising me, loving me and I cannot for the life of me figure out how you knew." Narrowed eyes and a playful smile find Jane's impossibly wider grin as she digs into her Birkin purse and pulls out a black velvet box and puts it on the table, pushing it in front of Jane.

As Jane starts to open her mouth, Maura reaches across the table to put one finger over her lips.

"No, I'm going first. So, no. You can wait."

"Bossy." Jane mutters under her breath, teasing.

"I heard that Detective Rizzoli," as Jane laughs out loud.

Maura drinks more of her latte and takes a couple of meditative breaths. Jane just looks on amusedly.

"Honestly Jane, I thought I'd have my shower to work out more of what I wanted to say-but I suppose this is better, more organic, _bigger_."

Jane smirks at this, "Maura…"

"No," holding up a warning hand, "I will go first, give me a second."

Reaching for her own ring box, she opens it before setting it down in front of Jane, a deceptively simple diamond ring nestled in black velvet. She takes both of the detective's hands in hers, smiling widely at the brown eyed woman.

"Jane Rizzoli, I love you-you help me to be the best version of myself. I laugh more, love more and think less. All things I wasn't sure I deserved. Thanks to you and your family and our friends-my life is more wonderful than I ever could've imagined. I promise to spend the rest of my life laughing with you, loving you and trying to make you as happy as you make me. Jane, you rat," Maura pauses to take in Jane's twinkly smile and wet eyes. "Jane, will you marry me?"

Jane's eyes were losing the battle against the tears.

"Maura that was an amazing proposal. I'm sorry I made you do it in a coffee house and not our restaurant." Jane trails off looking away from Maura's bright hazel.

A sturdy tug on Jane's hands brings her attention back. "Jane Rizzoli, you listen to me. You were absolutely right, this place holds so many of our best moments, our most worthwhile risks. So no I have no regrets asking you here. I love you. I love you so much and I want forever with you. Will you, Jane, will you?"

"Yes, Maura, of course yes." Jane leans forward and lets Maura wipe tears from her cheeks and kisses her sweetly, soundly, before they both lean back, taking deep breaths.

Maura reaches forward, plucking the ring from black velvet and slipping it onto a slender finger.

"Holy crap, Maura-you just asked me to marry you, in Prime Roast." Jane says delightedly, looking down at her newly adorned ring finger.

Maura giggles into the remains of her latte. "That I did. AND you said yes."

"Oh, boy, yes I did. So no take backs."

"I wouldn't dream of it." Maura grins.

"Ha, ha, Dr. Bossypants. It is my turn yet?"

"Oh, ahhh-" Maura stutters, suddenly nervous.

"No need to be nervous, right? I already said yes. And even though I hate to give up a secret I will tell you how I knew something was up tonight other than you being strangely skittish all week whenever I asked you about tonight's dinner."

"I thought I was playing it cool." Maura murmurs, reaching for Jane's hands to anchor herself.

Jane leans forward for a quick kiss to trembling lips. "You were but I had another clue. Ahhh, a few weeks ago, while you were in the shower I flipped open your laptop to check the scores and you had left the browser on. It was on the Tiffany's website. Now don't be mad, but I looked at what you were looking at and it was engagement ring after engagement ring. I started to get nervous." Jane looked down at the table, "I mean I know we live together and I don't want to be with anyone else ever but…" Jane gave Maura a pointed look.

"Jane Rizzoli, I can't believe you were snooping. I cannot believe it." Maura sat back and crossed her arms, her mouth a thin line but her eyes dancing.

Jane leans back, "Maur, no, come on, it was totally innocent. And anyways, in the end I realized you weren't looking for rings for yourself but rings for me. And then well…I got thinking." Jane looks down at her hands for a long moment.

Maura reaches across the table to pull scarred ones towards her.

Jane looks up into hazel eyes, "And then I got to thinking that _you_, amazing and smart and beautiful Dr. Maura Isles, were thinking you might want to marry _me_, Jane Rizzoli. I mean I have more bullet wounds than good sense, less money than you have class and I am cranky and sarcastic and yet you still love me and want to spend your life with me. Somehow we just work, balance each other out." Jane squeezes Maura's hands in front of her more firmly.

Maura tilts her head to look more closely at Jane," In fact it is the sarcasm that I fell in love with first." She says with a nudge to warm fingers.

"Ha, ha, Dr. Isles. You know what I mean." Jane breathes out.

"Yes, I do Jane. Are we getting anywhere close to a proposal here? At this rate we will never make our dinner reservation." She says smirking.

"Wow, a joke, I must be rubbing off on you." Jane chuckles.

"Well…" Maura trails off looking down, smiling.

Jane reaches forward and opens the ring box and places it right in front of Maura.

"Maura Isles, I love you right back. I promise to love you forever, help make the world the best place it can be for you. Sleeping next to you, sharing meals and laughing with you are just a few of the things I want forever for, so please, Maura, please marry me?

Jane reaches forward with a slim finger and nudges Maura's chin up so their eyes meet, "So what do you say? Marry me, too?"

Maura can only nod as the tears leak down her cheeks and she leans forward to kiss Jane on the lips.

"I love you, Jane, I love you, us. Thank you, thank you." She leaves fluttery kisses on Jane's face until they begin to laugh quietly.

"Here let me put the ring on." Jane slips the thin band of diamonds onto Maura's finger. "Did I do OK?" She asks looking down at Maura's hand.

Maura gazes down on their joined hands, "Yes, Jane it's beautiful. We're not making our dinner reservations are we?"

Jane clears her throat nervously, "Actually, I postponed our reservations until tomorrow night and invited Ma and Frankie, Korsak and Frost, thought we might tell them the good news together?"

Jane is taking great pains to not make eye contact with the doctor, until she notices Maura standing and offering her hand.

Maura pulls Jane up so that they are standing flush together and stands on her tip toes to whisper in Jane's ear.

"Jane, if we are relieved of going out to dinner then I have some other ideas of ways we could pass the evening all of which involve take-out and less clothing. Does that sound OK with you?"

Jane finally released the breath she'd been holding and it morphed into a breathy chuckle deep in her chest as she wrapped long arms around the doctor, squeezing firmly.

"I think I like your plans very much." Jane murmurs into honey blonde hair that smells of grapefruit and home.

"Well, shall we go then?" Maura asks stepping back away from the warmth that is Jane but keeping their hands linked together.

"Yes, always, yes."


End file.
